BMA Reveals New Guidelines For Antibiotics

The British Medical Association has warned that the alarming upwardtrend in antibiotic resistance represents a major public threat. In an attempt to tackle the problem, which it says is caused principally by antibiotic "overuse and misuse," it has made a number of recommendations and has highlighted particular areas of concern.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is currently resistant to oxacillin, the cephalosporins and imipenem, remaining sensitive only to the glycopeptides, vancomycin and teicoplanin. Such hospital-acquired infections can spread very quickly between patients, resulting in "serious illness, longer hospital stays, ward closures and escalating health costs," the BMA stresses.

Potential Crisis? Gonorrhea was, until recently, easily treatable with penicillin. However, some pathogens have become resistant to this first-line therapy, requiring a move to second-line agents such as tetracycline, the cephalosporins or quinolones. This has "clear financial implications," says the BMA, which also suggests that, as resistance varies between regions, a policy for treatment should be based on knowledge of the local resistance pattern.